Gibbons Style Session Closes Out World Ski & Snowboard Festival

Stick a fork in it… the always fun-filled World Ski & Snowboard Festival is done. The nine-day event concluded this past weekend in Whistler, B.C., with the first ever Gibbons Style Session rail jam acting as the on-hill finale. The event, which took place on the final Saturday night of the Festival in the absence of big air, was put on by Gibbons Whistler, who in addition to owning and operating a majority of the bars in the area (where they’ve thrown the best parties for the last 30+ years), are focused on events and initiatives that bring the community of Whistler together. So when it became apparent that there was a risk of there being no ski or snowboard events in Skier’s Plaza at the base of Whistler Mountain on the final Saturday night of WSSF, Gibbons said “nu-uh” to that… and thus the Gibbons Style Session was born.

In front of a Fireball-induced crowd, who braved light rain to shake their booties as Chromeo, the headliner of the Fido Outdoor Concert Series, got down on the wheels of steel, an impressive line-up of two-man and two-woman teams, featuring one skier and one snowboarder (in an unique twist to the event), took to side-by-side cannon rails under the lights to put on one hell of a show for Whistler.

When the dust has settled from the fireworks above, it was X Games gold medalists Kaya Turski and Spencer O’Brien reigning supreme on the ladies’ side of things, while amongst the less fairer gender, Evan McEachran and Tyler Nicholson inverted their way to the win, with both teams taking home $4,000 cash, while Blaine Gallavan and Ryan Manning walked (and later stumbled) away with $500 bar tabs from the Longhorn Saloon for Best Style and Highest Individual Score, respectively.

This concludes our coverage of the World Ski & Snowboard Festival. A big thanks goes out to Gibbons Whistler for stepping in and up to make the show on Saturday night happen, and above all else, to Sue Eckersley, Chelsea Moen, Jaime Kerrigan, Kristy Mitchell and all of their incredibly hard-working staff at WSSF. For more on the Gibbons Style Session, check out the press release below, and here’s to another great year in Whistler! —JEFF SCHMUCK

SPENCER O’BRIEN, KAYA TURSKI, TYLER NICHOLSON AND EVAN MCEACHRAN WIN WOMEN’S AND MEN’S GIBBONS STYLE SESSION AT THE WORLD SKI & SNOWBOARD FESTIVAL

WHISTLER, BC – April 17, 2016 – Saturday night at the World Ski & Snowboard Festival (WSSF) the Gibbons Style Session made its inaugural mark on the snow sports events lineup. Winter X Games Champions Spencer O’Brien and Kaya Turski landed in first place in the women’s category while Tyler Nicholson and Evan McEachran came out on top in the men’s category at the Gibbons Style Session.

In the Women’s Style Session Finals, O’Brien and Turski stepped up and threw down, locking in the highest score of 147.0, landing them on top of the podium with an $8,000 cheque. Ontario natives Tyler Nicholson and Evan McEachran brought their top game to the Men’s Style Session Finals earning them a score of 177.5 and a well-deserved first place and $8,000. Blaine Gallavan walked away with Best Style for his Misty 540 with a Hand Plant and Ryan Manning won Best Individual Score of 90.0.

The skiing versus snowboarding debate was brought to a head last night as the Gibbons Style Session paired one skier and one snowboarder on the same team. The course featured two cannon-style rail features at the base of Whistler Mountain, allowing teams to session the course at the same time. This unique format kept the energy and excitement at an all-time high for the massive crowd in Skier’s Plaza.

Complete results from the Gibbons Style Session can be found at wssf.com/Gibbons-Style-Session

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